Fairhaven College Bylaws
Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies
College Bylaws
Edited 3/8/24, Approved at 3/12/24 CS
1. Preamble
Fairhaven College is an undergraduate liberal arts college within Western Washington University. In accordance with the Mission Statement, Fairhaven College attempts to integrate formal and informal aspects of education and to maintain an action-oriented, problem-solving philosophy of learning. Decision-making within the College and participation in its management is a process shared among faculty, students, and staff. Fairhaven College is founded on the principle that honest and open dialogue is necessary for teaching and learning. The following Bylaws define the formal structures and procedures of the College and implement the powers granted to the College under the Charter.
2. Membership
For the purposes of these Bylaws and defining membership and eligibility for standing committee membership, Fairhaven College is composed of the following constituencies: tenured faculty, probationary (tenure-track) faculty, and limited-term faculty (visiting faculty, adjunct, and senior instructors); members of the staff responsible to the Dean of the College; and students currently enrolled at Fairhaven College (hereafter, community-at-large).
3. Voting Rights and Privileges
Tenured faculty and tenure-track faculty of Fairhaven College with appointments of .5 FTE or greater have voting rights. In addition, senior instructors, Fairhaven staff, and the two Associated Student senators representing Fairhaven College have voting rights. However, only tenured and tenure-track faculty have voting rights on issues of appointment, tenure, promotion, or other personnel matters, including changes to the Academic Unit Evaluation Plan. Faculty directors of minors or programs affiliated with Fairhaven have voting rights for decisions affecting those minors or programs.
Fairhaven students who are serving on Fairhaven committees hold voting privileges on those committees. A quorum is defined as a majority of voting members, excluding those on leave.
4. Fairhaven College Governance Structure
The Fairhaven College governance structure is comprised of three constituent bodies (1) the faculty, (2) standing and ad hoc committees, and (3) the community-at-large.
At each decision-making level (faculty, standing and/or ad hoc committee, community-at-large), voting membership of the appropriate constituent body makes policy for the College. Each constituent body shall have the power to recommend, initiate, review, revise, approve, and adopt policies for the College, within the limits of the College Charter and these Bylaws, and subject to the policies and regulations adopted by the Board of Trustees of Western Washington University and appropriate councils and officers of Western Washington University.
Each constituent body (faculty, standing and/or ad hoc committee, community-at-large) shall meet as often as it deems necessary to conduct its business. Regular meeting notices and agendas shall be distributed at least twenty-four hours in advance, and all meetings shall be open, except those where personnel decisions are under consideration, in accordance with university policy and state or federal law.
Each constituent body shall adopt its own rules and operating procedures and may devise an appropriate internal organization (e.g., of sub-committees) to conduct its affairs, provided that the provisions of these Bylaws in relation to the College governance structure shall apply.
5. The Faculty
The Fairhaven College faculty is comprised of tenured faculty, probationary (tenure-track), and limited-term faculty. The rights, privileges, and responsibilities of Fairhaven faculty are identical to those listed for all Western Washington University faculty in the Faculty Handbook.
In general, voting privileges are held by tenured faculty with appointments of .5 FTE or greater and the probationary (tenure-track) faculty. In non-personnel matters, voting privileges are extended to probationary (tenure-track) and tenured faculty holding appointments of less than .5 FTE, limited-term faculty, and full-time staff.
All-College meetings are held semi-monthly and as needed during the academic year.
6. The Staff
The Fairhaven College staff is comprised of individuals who assist the Dean and the Fairhaven community, coordinate advising, admissions, and communications, and manage curriculum, assessment, records, finances, information technology, media, the main office, and other duties in support of the college.
7. The Students
The Fairhaven College student body is comprised of students currently enrolled in Fairhaven College.
The students have primary responsibility for their learning. The qualifications of students shall be as outlined in the Admissions policy of Western Washington University and of Fairhaven College, and all matters of policy concerning student life and conduct shall be in accordance with Western Washington University and/or Fairhaven College policy.
8. Standing and Ad-Hoc Committees: General Provisions
The following are the standing committees of Fairhaven College: the Admissions Committee, the Curriculum Committee, the Personnel Committee, and the Scholarship Committee.
Membership of the standing and ad hoc committees and terms of office shall be determined by appointment of the Dean in consultation with the faculty chair. Faculty and staff committee membership shall be staggered, where possible, to facilitate continuity in committee operations.
The Chairperson of each standing and ad hoc committee shall report to the Fairhaven faculty and Dean on the committee’s activities and shall forward major policy and personnel recommendations to the Dean for approval of the appropriate constituent body.
Standing Committee Membership
Admissions Committee: Members consist of the Dean (ex officio), faculty, and admissions staff. The Admissions Committee advises on student admissions decisions, recommends student recruitment strategies, and consults with the staff, faculty, and Dean on other admissions and enrollment management matters.
Curriculum Committee: Members consist of the Dean (ex officio), faculty chair, no less than three permanent faculty members, curriculum and advising staff, and students. The chair of the committee shall be a faculty member with a term of office of no less than two years and shall not be the Chair of the college faculty. The Curriculum Committee shall review and approve courses; shall have responsibility for curriculum development; shall make recommendations of curricular need and allocation of limited-term faculty funds to the Dean; recommend to the faculty chair and the Dean, and any relevant program director, persons for limited-term faculty appointment; shall be responsible for curricular liaison with Western Washington University; and shall make curricular recommendations to the faculty and Dean. Final internal actions on the curriculum are the responsibility of the faculty, the faculty chair, and the Dean.
Personnel Committee: Members consist of tenured faculty. The Personnel Committee reviews and evaluates tenure-line faculty members in probationary year three, for tenure and promotion, and post-tenure review. The Personnel Committee also manages the evaluation of Senior Instructors as required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement and the Fairhaven College Academic Unit Evaluation Plan.
It shall also make recommendations to the Dean and the faculty regarding such matters as leave, exchange, terms and conditions of appointment, the Fairhaven section of the WWU Faculty Handbook, the Fairhaven Academic Unit Evaluation Plan, and other matters affecting faculty conditions of employment. The Committee may evaluate the Dean, upon request from the faculty, periodically.
Scholarship Committee: Members consist of faculty and staff. The Scholarship Committee shall review scholarship applications and award college scholarships and student development grants.
9. Membership Community Meetings
Meetings of the membership may be called to discuss all matters affecting the Fairhaven College community. Meetings may be called by the Dean, by 50% of the faculty, by 75% of the staff, or by a group of 50 students.
10. DEAN
The Dean is the chief administrative and academic officer of Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies, with primary responsibility for educational coordination and development, administration, leadership, long-range planning, personnel, fundraising, and budget. The Dean works to build, support, and protect the College’s commitment to transformative, creative, inquiry-based learning that promotes social, economic, and environmental justice.
The Dean
a. serves as the principal liaison and advocate for Fairhaven College and its affiliated programs with Western Washington University administration and with other WWU academic units.
b. has final internal control over personnel and budget matters.
c. supervises the preparation of budget requests, issues budgets to subunits of Fairhaven—including the Center for Law, Diversity, and Justice—and monitors the general policy and budgetary guidelines.
d. develops and provides contracts outlining the roles, responsibilities, and compensation (as applicable) for directors and advisors of programs, centers, and minors within Fairhaven College.
e. works with the Foundation of Western Washington University on fundraising for the College.
f. meets with and works with the faculty chair to advocate for and support faculty.
g. meets with, works with, advocates for, supports, supervises, and mentors staff.
h. meets with and works with Fairhaven student senators.
i. meets with, supports, gives guidance to, and advocates for directors and advisors of programs, centers, and minors within Fairhaven College.
j. supports Fairhaven faculty with split appointments by communicating with and cultivating cross-campus relationships with other WWU academic units.
k. discusses, reviews policy, and makes recommendations to the faculty and staff regarding policy and procedural matters.
l. coordinates and supervises periodic assessments of Fairhaven as required by WWU, including Fairhaven’s core curriculum, and learning goals.
m. organizes the tenure and promotion schedule for each academic year.
n. reviews materials submitted by faculty applying for tenure and promotion, considers the recommendations of tenured faculty, the Personnel Committee, and the faculty chair, and then makes tenure and promotion recommendations to the Provost.
o. has final approval of all Independent Study Projects, including travel study, field study, senior projects, internships, and group ISPs.
p. contacts faculty regarding late narrative evaluations, as detailed in Fairhaven’s Narrative Evaluation Policy; administers and implements the Narrative Evaluation Policy along with the Faculty Chair.
q. oversees and enforces Fairhaven College’s course cancellation policy.
s. with the faculty chair and program directors, plans and carries out new faculty orientation.
t. organizes, in an equitable manner, Fairhaven and WWU service and committee assignments for each academic year.
u. assigns and appoints administrative support for the standing committees, as needed.
v. may teach one class per academic year consistent with the Collective Bargaining Agreement
w. has final responsibility for admissions outreach, official dissemination of information about Fairhaven, and alumni relations.
x. in consultation with staff, writes the annual report for the College.
y. keeps the Fairhaven community informed of the state of the College.
Evaluation of the Dean: The Provost will conduct an evaluation of the Dean at least once every four years. The Personnel Committee may request an evaluation at any time. The Personnel Committee may solicit comments annually from the community regarding the performance of the Dean and shall summarize these comments in an open letter to the Dean. The Dean may request the Personnel Committee to organize an internal college review of their job performance in any year.
11. THE CHAIR
The Chair is a Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies tenured faculty member who advocates for, mentors, and reviews faculty, addresses student and faculty concerns using relevant university procedures, facilitates All-College Meetings, works with the Dean, and creates effective and inclusive communication processes within the College.
The Chair
a. reports to the Dean and meets regularly with the Dean to review College goals and direction.
b. plans, conducts, and facilitates regular All College Meetings and, with the Curriculum Committee, curriculum retreats. Coordinates the taking and organizing of meeting minutes.
c. As a member of and in conjunction with the Curriculum Committee,
works with faculty and program directors to develop, track, and coordinate summer and academic year teaching schedules.
Hires teaching professors from the vacancy pool in consultation with the Curriculum Committee and coordination with program directors as appropriate.
Partners with directors and coordinators of programs, centers, and minors within Fairhaven to determine course allocations and other curricular matters.
Works with other WWU academic units regarding cross-listed courses, faculty with split appointments, senior instructors, and teaching professor course allocations.
Communicates with Fairhaven faculty about their courses and teaching loads; and approves all curricular changes for the College.
d. with the Dean and Program Directors, plans and carries out new faculty orientation, and mentors new faculty.
e. reviews and approves various E-sign forms required to comply with WWU policies.
f. conducts annual Fairhaven teaching professor reviews. including through observations of course teachings, (in accordance with CBA 8.1.3)
g. conducts reviews of probationary tenure-track faculty in their first, second, fourth, and fifth years.
h. receives the Personnel Committee review letter for probationary tenure-track faculty in their third year, writes their own review letter, and sends it to the Dean.
i. receives the Personnel Committee review letter for faculty applying for tenure and promotion, and for post-tenure review, writes their own review letter, and sends it to the Dean.
j. develops and maintains College records.
k. with the Dean, the program and center directors, and the minor coordinators and advisors, collaborates to develop clear operational procedures for coordinating faculty leaves, requesting data from staff, and other matters.
12. Policymaking
The policies of Fairhaven College shall be in accordance with the Charter of Fairhaven College and the Faculty Handbook as approved by the Board of Trustees of Western Washington University. Where the Fairhaven College Bylaws diverge from the Faculty Handbook, Faculty Handbook provisions take precedence.
All policies of Fairhaven College derive their authority from the Fairhaven College governance structure and shall be made by the Fairhaven faculty, standing and/or ad hoc committees, and the community-at-large, subject to review by the Provost.
13. Referendum and Grievance Procedure
Decisions reached by the Dean, the Chair, the Fairhaven College faculty, or standing committees may be appealed by a petition to the Dean for a reconsideration of the decision from 50% or more of the faculty or 50 students within 10 working days of the public announcement of the decision.
If an appealed decision is not reversed or substantially altered by the governance body making the decision, the matter shall be submitted to a community-at-large referendum. Except concerning questions of curriculum, personnel, budget, or other areas where legal authority and responsibility reside in the hands of the governance body making the decision, a decision can be reversed by a majority vote of at least 50% of the community members as defined by the Bylaws.
In matters of curriculum, personnel, budget, or other areas where legal authority and responsibility reside in the hands of the governance body making the decision, the referendum vote shall be advisory to the governing body making the decision.
Grievances shall be referred to the Dean or appropriate office identified in the University’s formal grievance procedures and/or Faculty Handbook.
14. Initiative
Upon written petition to the Dean of 50% of the faculty or 50 students, an initiative proposal shall be put to the vote of the community-at-large.
15. Amendment
These Bylaws may be amended by the faculty, subject to the approval of the Board of Trustees of Western Washington University. At least one regular meeting of the college faculty must occur after an amendment is adopted and before it is submitted to the Board of Trustees.